Tension mounts in Buguma, headquarters of Asari-Toru Local Government Area of Rivers State as a faction of the All Progressives Congress (APC) led by the former chairman of Asari-Toru Local Government Area, Mr. Ojukaye Flag Amachree stopped the speaker of the divided Rivers State House of Assembly (RSHA), Rt. Hon. Otelemaba Dan Amachree and his entourage from addressing the APC members from the thirteen wards of the LGA at the Council premises.
According to information reaching our political desk, the incident took place last weekend as Speaker Dan Amachree stormed the Council headquarters to address APC members and subsequently to tour round the various wards of the LGA, when a factional group shouted at him to stop addressing the party faithful. As the factional members of Asalga APC booed the factional Speaker of RSHA, confusion rocked the meeting which propelled some party members who are loyal to the ex-council boss to move out of the venue of the meeting. The Rivers Speaker and members of his entourage which include: Hon. Godstime Ben Horsfall, a lawmaker, representing Asalga constituency II in the RSHA, the Commissioner in charge of the Rivers State Ministry of Women Affairs, Mrs. Joeba West and other Chieftains of the APC were left alone in the meeting.
The walk-out of Mr. Flag Amachree, erstwhile Asalga chairman and his team disrupted the meeting and the ward tour.
Shortly after the ex-council chairman and his loyalists left the venue of the meeting, they went on protest, against the speaker’s leadership of the party in the LGA.
The rationale behind the ex-chairman and his group opposing the speaker is unknown as at the time of filing in this report, but sources attributed it to “fighting over supremacy”.
According to the sources, Mr. Flag Amachree is more rooted in the LGA than the speaker, adding that if Rt. Hon. Amachree is allowed to resume the leadership of the party in the LGA, most of its members will decamp to the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which will not be healthy for the APC at the grassroots. ###
